According to NASA, the Orbital Sciences Corp.’s Antares rocket and Cygnus cargo spacecraft were set to launch at 6:22 p.m. ET. It was set to carry some 5,000 pounds of supplies and experiments to the International Space Station.

“There was failure on launch,” NASA spokesman Jay Bolden said. “There was no indicated loss of life.

Bolden added, “There was significant property and vehicle damage. Mission control is trying to assess what went wrong.”

An unmanned rocket carrying supplies to the International Space Station has exploded seconds after lift-off.

NASA TV footage showed the Antares rocket, built and launched by Orbital Sciences Corp, bolting off its seaside launch pad at the Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia and exploding seconds later.

The cause of the accident is not yet known.

No one is believed to be injured and the damage appears to be limited to the facilities, according to the company.

The rocket was carrying nearly 5,000lb (2,200kg) of supplies and materials for space experiments, including investigating how to stop headaches in space, measuring the rate of pea-shoot growth, and how milk spoils in micro-gravity.

The launch was postponed on Monday after a boat ventured into a restricted zone within 10 minutes of take-off.

NASA is paying the Virginia-based Orbital Sciences and the California-based SpaceX company to keep the space station stocked.

The mission, known as CRS-3, was to be Orbital’s fourth trip to the ISS.